Vegetable Mai Fun with Balsamic Molasses Sauce

This Balsamic Molasses Sauce has quickly become a favorite in my kitchen. The original recipe came from one of my favorite online cookery blogs, Gluten Free Goddess. I have enjoyed every recipe that I have made from her site. This sauce and much of my recipe is a variation of her Turkey Meatball Asian Noodles, a dish that was originally inspired by an episode of Jaime Oliver's Food Revolution. However, my recipe is ultimately different and, of course, influenced by the vegetables from my WGG box. In lieu of turkey meatballs, I decided to go vegetarian and use a  mushroom and red pepper base. For the noodles, in order to make Ed feel better about partaking in a carbohydrate dish, I picked up a box of gluten free brown rice mai fun. But the sauce is what makes the dish. It's an unlikely combination of black strap molasses and balsamic vinegar. The first time I made it, I was unsure of how it would taste and if Ed (or I) was going to like it, but it turned out fabulous. Now I keep the basic molasses/balsamic vinegar sauce the same and  alternate the veggies, chicken,  tofu, etc and various noodle types based on what we are in the mood to eat.

Ingredients
1 Red Pepper, sliced
2 stalks Green Onions, diced
1 pint of Mushrooms
1 tsp of Garlic, diced
1 tsp of Ginger, paste
1 Egg (or tofu equivalent)
3 tbsp Black Strap Molasses
2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 bunch of fresh Parsley, chopped
1 bunch of fresh Mint, chopped
1 bunch of fresh Cilantro, chopped
1 box of Mai Fun Noodles (Brown Rice Angel Hair Pasta)
1 tsp Sesame Oil

Directions

Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil into a saute pan. Add green onions, garlic, ginger, mushrooms, and red pepper. Stir fry veggies until they are tender. Then add the egg and stir it in to the veggies. Once the egg is fully cooked, add the molasses and vinegar and stir until veggies are coated with the sauce. Reduce heat and simmer. Meanwhile, prepare the noodles according to the box instructions. These Mai Fun noodles cooked in only 2-3 minutes. When they are done cooking, drain the noodles and return them to their pot. I then stirred in a bit of sesame oil to keep the noodles from sticking. Before serving the dish, add the fresh cilantro, mint, and parsley to the saute pan and stir the greens around for a minute or two until they become tender. Serve the vegetables over the noodles.

Ed's Verdict: Coming from an austere meat eater, Ed was less than impressed with the vegetarian version of this dish. "It was lacking meat", he caviled. However, I made the EXACT SAME DISH a couple of weeks ago with chicken instead of mushrooms, and he loved it. Silly.